The invention relates to provision of mobile Internet services.
The primary technology for mobile Internet applications is Wireless Application Protocol (WAP) technology. However; other technologies are also important, including voice, Short Message Service (SMS), GPRS, and 3GIP. It is known to provide a WAP gateway to provide access of mobile users to Internet content.
Delivering Internet based services to the wireless domain opens an extensive new market for network operators and content providers. However, when mobile, user needs and expectations differ greatly from when they may be in an office or home environment. Mobile users are unlikely to use their handsets to xe2x80x98surf the webxe2x80x99 at present as they might on a PCxe2x80x94at least until such time as available bandwidth is greatly increased and mobile networks have the necessary capacity to support such activities on a widescale basis.
Instead, mobile subscribers are more likely to have much more specific requirements when using the mobile device as a data terminal. They may, for example, wish to retrieve important emails from their mailbox, check the latest product pricing from the corporate intranet, receive the latest news updates or conduct a purchase, for example of cinema or concert tickets.
For such services to be viable on a mobile terminal, they must be accessible and intuitive and the subscriber should regard the services as being relevant and useful to him or her.
Various technical problems present themselves in an effort to achieve such user requirements. These include requirements to:
Deliver an optimal service within the current limitations of wireless networks and devices, for example low bandwidth, latency, device processing power, display and memory size etc.
Offer sophisticated mobile Internet services which will be as intuitive for subscribers to use as making a phone call.
Provide a flexible billing scheme which is easily understood by users.
Implement a secure, managed service environment whilst also offering personalised content.
Support the large number of subscribers using non-WAP terminals.
Manage a seamless service offering to both pre-paid and post-paid subscribers.
Deliver services optimally over various bearers for example Circuit Switched Data, SMS, Cell Broadcast, GSM USSD and GPRS (or IS-95B/CDMA 2000 Packet data services).
Provide a migration path to GPRS, EDGE and Third Generation network technologies.
The invention is directed towards providing a service management framework access node to provide at least some of these requirements.
According to the invention, there is provided a service management access node comprising a mobile network interface, an Internet interface, and a service conversion and message relaying platform between said interfaces for provision of Internet content to mobile subscribers, characterised in that,
the platform comprises means for controlling mobile subscriber access according to security criteria, for allowing a mobile subscriber to create a personalised content profile, and for storing said profile and managing transmission of requests and delivery of content according to said profile, and
the mobile network interface comprises a bearer stack for each of a plurality of different bearers.
In one embodiment, the platform comprises a portal comprising means for interfacing with the bearer stacks and with a WAP gateway, and wherein the portal comprises the Internet interface.
In another embodiment, the platform comprises a pre-pay system comprising means for allowing access by mobile subscribers to content on a pre-paid basis.
Preferably, the pre-pay system is a module linked with the portal.
In one embodiment, the portal is connected to the bearer stacks via bearer management functions.
In another embodiment, the bearer management functions include an SMSC.
In one embodiment, the bearer management functions include a cell broadcast control function.
In one embodiment, the bearer management functions include a USSD server.
In another embodiment, the portal is linked with the bearer management functions via a SMPP interface.
In one embodiment, the portal is linked with the pre-pay system via said SMPP interface.
In another embodiment, the portal comprises a billing application comprising means for writing billing event data to a billing log for export to an external billing system, and for dynamically interfacing with a pre-pay system for real-time debiting of subscriber accounts.
In a further embodiment, the node comprises a push server connected to the portal and to bearer management functions.
In one embodiment, the node further comprises a WTA server comprising means for invocation of mobile network services including call set-up, call forwarding, and call answering services.
In one embodiment, the UVTA server is configured as a Web Server for delivery of content requested by a client and has access to mobile network elements.
In another embodiment, the portal comprises a secure Web-based self-provisioning interface comprising means for enabling mobile network subscribers to select a portfolio of personalised services.
In one embodiment, said interface comprises means for creating a subscriber home page defining the personalised services.
In another embodiment, said interface comprises means for setting data filters, for defining push schedules, and for configuring subscriber terminal type.
In a further embodiment, the portal comprises means for allowing subscriber access to said home page via both the Internet and via a mobile network.
In one embodiment, said portal comprises a customer care provisioning interface and a provisioning database, said interface allowing network operator personnel to access said database for inputting and updating operator-specific provisioning data for subscribers.
In another embodiment, said provisioning interface comprises a mobile subscriber device provisioning function comprising means for matching content and Internet applications for device type.
In one embodiment, the portal comprises means for instantiating a generic subscriber object oriented class representing common characteristics of all subscribers, for instantiating subscriber device classes derived from the generic subscriber class, and for instantiating a management object for a subscriber.
In another embodiment, the portal comprises means for instantiating a session object for a subscriber session.
In one embodiment, the portal comprises means for linking a session object to a subscriber access rights object representing subscribed-to services.
In another embodiment, the portal comprises means for instantiating dynamic management objects for updating a subscriber""s service profile, said dynamic management object interacting with session management objects to monitor subscriber usage patterns and for dynamically modifying the service profile.
In one embodiment, the portal comprises means for instantiating a payment management class for controlling subscriber payment for services.